In many ways, Bitonio has become what Thomas was to Browns fans, media and the organization, a torch unofficially passed on what most thought would be just another fall Sunday afternoon.
Time flies in this league and it doesn’t seem so long ago that Bitonio was a fresh-faced rookie about to line up next to an eighth-year tackle playing his position as well as anyone ever had.
“The thing I remember was how much butter he was putting on his bread,” Bitonio said. “I don’t know why that sticks out in my head, but he was just super buttering his bread and then he put a little salt on it and I was like, I’d never seen that before. And I’m like, it must be a Wisconsin thing.” Thomas kept a notebook of every player he faced, the moves they tried on him, what worked and what didn’t.“He had these stretching routines, when he got massages, the way he activated himself or cold tubs, hot tubs,” Bitonio said. “And I really just tried to study how he was a professional and I think that really separated him from other talented players is how he handled himself off the field.
Whether it was helping Bitonio notice tendencies -- like in 2014 when he pointed out Pernell McPhee’s go-to move was always to the offensive line’s right -- to answering his technique questions, even if Bitonio admitted he was probably annoying the veteran. Thomas’ off-field endeavors also served as an inspiration for Bitonio, who was the team’s nominee for Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2022. Thomas was a finalist for the award back in 2013 and was the team’s nominee in 2010 and 2016.
But it’s easy to hear the respect he has for Thomas and how much he appreciates being mentioned in the same breath as him.
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